I'll Stand By You
by KatelynRoxUrSox
Summary: Dave has been given bad news, affecting the whole team, but one agent in particular. What will he do to fix the problem and what will the agent do when the news is released? Part of my character POV collection. Based on: I'll Stand By You- the Pretenders
1. Chapter 1

_**a/n: **_**In this story:**

** Episode: Haley is dead• Jack is still with Hotch •Henry is born, JJ and Will are still together (engaged, not yet married)•JJ still works at the BAU (for now?) • Emily is alive, no mention of Ian Doyle whatsoever. **

**I think that about covers it. Enjoy!**

__

**Oh…why you look so sad?**

**the tears are in your eyes**

**come on and come to me now**

"Erin, dammit, don't you see? This is a bad decision!" I yelled.

"Agent Rossi do _not_ use that tone with me in _my_ office!" The devil herself yelled back at me. Erin Strauss, the section chief of the BAU, with her blonde hair, wicked eyes, and her brain whirling with ideas to get rid of our team, stood in front of me explaining her plan to me. Just me. Not our unit chief, "Hotch" as we called him, but me. David Rossi. _SSA _David Rossi. But nonetheless, me.

"Oh Jesus Christ, Strauss," I said throwing my hands up in the air.

"You need to look at this from my point of view!" She said.

"If it was entirely up to you this whole team would be broken apart!" I yelled back. Knock. Knock. Knock.

"Do not breathe another word of this to anyone," She hissed in a low voice, and then in a louder one said, "Come in!" JJ, the slender, beautiful, blonde media liaison, in a black pencil skirt, white short sleeve blouse, and her blonde hair, wavy, framing her porcelain face.

"Sir, we have a case," JJ said, waving a yellowish file in the air.

"I'll be right there, JJ. Start without me, tell Hotch I'll be there in a few minutes," I told her.

"Of course," She said and walked away. JJ, ever so professional, even in the worst times. I smiled as she walked away.

"What are you smirking about?" Erin spit out.

"JJ. JJ is a perfect example of what this team is. She's professional, kind, a helpful team member, and she does one hell of a job, every single day," I explained. Strauss was obviously not following, so I continued, "She is a _necessity_ to our team. They are all necessities. WIth out one of them, our team doesn't function correctly. Breaking us up would be a mistake. Not talking to the Unit Chief about this _is_ a mistake. And now," I said turning towards the door, "I have a case. Goodbye," I said, waving.

Being a little joke-y and sarcastic with her was never a good idea, but I did it anyway. I was in my mid fifties, but once in a rare while, I had to act like I was younger. It..lightens the mood sometimes. And with the dark job that my team and I have, humor and lightening the mood is the most important thing to know.

I walked out of her office, being careful to shut the door without slamming it, and made my way to the conference room. As I walked down the cat walk, I saw Penelope Garcia, our funky, bright technical analysts. Her strange, but happy words, paired with her unique sense of style and self, made her one of the greatest people ever, always there to make you smile or laugh.

"Hey, what was that all about?" She asked me as we walked together towards the conference room. Today's outfit was a white and purple flowered skirt, lavender pumps, a white blouse, a lighter lavender sweater, and her bright orange hair straightened and up in two pigtails. Her makeup and jewelry were different shades of purple as well, to match her outfit.

"Ah, Strauss being Strauss," I said shrugging.

"Well," She said stopping me, "Is it anything I can take care of?" She asked, meaning some sort of hacking.

"Uh," I began, thinking of something to say, because I couldn't tell her, but I couldn't lie.

"It was all…yell-y, and loud," Garcia said.

"Don't worry about, Garcia. It'll be fine," I assured her.

"Alright well if there's anything I can do," She began.

"I'll let you know," I said smiling.

"They're still in there," Garcia said, pointing to the team in the conference room.

"Thanks Garcia," I told her, and headed towards the conference room, while she made her way to her office. I entered the room and took a chair next to Derek Morgan. Derek was a strong, fit, African American, SSA, ladies man, in his early forties. He was fun, but very serious and dedicated when it came to his work, although he did have a good sense of humor. He often sexually harassed Penelope Garcia, but she never hesitates to return it. They'd been great friends since Penelope started working.

"Hey," Derek said.

"Hi, sorry i'm late," I said apologizing to the group.

"That's alright. Wheels up in 30 and we'll brief you on the jet," our unit chief, Aaron Hotchner, said. Aaron, or Hotch as we all called him, was a serious man. He had a son who was 6 named Jack. He wasn't always that serious, however. In 2009, his wife, Haley, was killed at the hands of a notorious serial killer, 'the Reaper', who's goal was to destroy Hotch. Hotch killed the Reaper, and saved his young son, but did not make it in time to save his wife. This haunts him, and though he is a good father, a dedicated team member and strong leader, he does not smile as much as he used to.

Hotch stayed in his seat. JJ gathered her files and exited the room, followed by Derek Morgan. Our youngest team member, Spencer Reid, who was about 30, now, followed. He was a genius. He had an eidetic memory, an IQ of 180, he could read 20,000 words per minute, and he was an amazing profiler. He's awkward around girls, sometimes, and has a habit of babbling statistics, but the team loves him. Following him, was Emily Prentiss.

Emily joined the team in 2007. She was a beautiful brunette, pale, with raven colored hair that framed her face. We had become very close over her years with the team. She had shared secrets with me that she hadn't told anyone else. She had shared one of her biggest secrets with me, that she had gotten pregnant at 15, and then got an abortion. The argument this morning with Strauss was about her.

"Dave," Hotch said to me.

"Yes?" I asked.

"Is there something going on with Strauss that I need to know about?" He asked.

"Yes." I wasn't going to lie to him.

"Are you going to tell me?" He asked.

"No," I said shrugging. I couldn't tell him. Strauss would.

"When she's ready, Strauss will tell you. I don't know why the hell she wanted to talk to me, but she did. Now c'mon, you have a team waiting for you," I said, and walked out the door. Hotch didn't question me. He followed. We walked out to the bull pen where the other agents were collecting their things.

"Hey Emily," Reid said.

"What's up?" She asked.

"Isn't tomorrow your birthday?" He asked.

"You're the genius. You tell me," She said grinning.

"Oh it is? Is it?" Derek said grinning. He turned to Reid, "Pretty boy, how old is our princess turning tomorrow?"

"Let's see that would be-" Reid was cut off.

"HEY!" Emily said loudly, "That's for me to know. And not for you. Ever," Emily said. She smiled and waved goodbye to the boys and walked out with JJ.

"42," Reid whispered.

"I heard that!" Emily called not turning around, "And I'm going to kill you!" She called as Reid cringed and Derek laughed.

"Kids, play nicely," JJ, the mother figure around her, warned.

"Mommy to the rescue, once again," Derek said teasing Reid.

"Mommy?" Reid said confused. I smiled as I watched them tease each other like a group of kids, like a family. Emily's birthday was tomorrow. Strauss better not screw up that day by firing her or splitting up the team.

"What are you thinking about?" Hotch asked me.

"Nothing much," I said, and with that I headed out the door, followed by Hotch, but without another word.


	2. Chapter 2

**a/n: thanks for the reviews and i hope you enjoy this chapter! **

**don't be ashamed to cry**

**let me see you through**

**cuz i've seen the dark side too**

We boarded the jet. It was a four and a half hour flight from Quantico to San Diego, where we would be heading for the case. Emily headed to the back of the plane, put headphones in, and pulled out the case file. Likewise, Derek sat across from her, put in his headphones and began to read his copy of the case file. Reid sat down on the couch with the case file and began to read and analyze. Hotch sat at the table with me and JJ and they briefed me on the case.

"Looks like two unsubs, submissive dominant," I commented.

"The unsubs are holding the victims for 72 hours and dumping them in the morning," JJ said.

"So what's he doing with them for 72 hours?" I asked.

"That's what we have to figure out," Hotch said. JJ got up to get some coffee. When she left, Hotch looked at me.

"So, I take it your meeting with Strauss didn't go over too well?" Hotch asked.

"Not at all," I said sighing, "She thinks we're all replaceable," I said.

"She doesn't understand how our team works," Hotch said.

"I even used JJ as an example of how this team is and how this team work, but that didn't help," I said running my hand through my hair.

"It's true," Hotch said, smiling as he thought about the blonde media liaison. This was all about Emily, though, right? No mention of JJ's transfer?" Hotch asked in a hushed voice.

"Just Emily," I said equally quietly.

"Are you allowed to tell me what the conversation," He said put air quotes around the word conversation, "was about?"

"Not without losing my job," I said rolling my eyes, "But at the rate she's going, we might be heading that way soon," I said chuckling.

"That's alright," Hotch said chuckling as well.

"I don't know why she didn't just talk to you about it, though," I said.

"I do," Hotch said. Just as he was about to tell me, JJ came back with three cups of coffee. She put one down in front of me and in front of Rossi. She sat down.

"Hotch," JJ began, "Has Strauss said anything to you about…my transfer?" She asked quietly. Even though Reid was in depth in the case file, and Derek and Emily both had headphones in, we wanted to be sure no one could hear.

"You knew about that?" Hotch asked.

"The offers…the offers came to me first," JJ admitted.

"Offers?" Hotch asked. I sat quietly.

"Two. From the…pentagon," She admitted.

"Why didn't you tell me? I know you didn't have to, but JJ, the pentagon? That's a big deal," Hotch said.

"I know, Hotch. And I'm sorry I didn't tell you, but I declined twice. I don't want the job, but unfortunately, now Strauss is forcing me to take it," JJ explained.

"She talked to you, too? Before talking to me?" Hotch asked.

"I guess so," JJ said sighing.

"Okay. We'll deal with this, with Strauss, later. We all have to be focused on this case. It doesn't look like a good one," Hotch said.

"Okay," JJ said nodding.

"No one else on the team knows, right?" I said finally speaking up.

"No one. Not even Garcia. I made sure of it," JJ said.

"Good," I said nodding. Then Garcia buzzed in. JJ opened up the laptop. I motioned for Derek, Emily and Reid to come over. They gathered around us.

"Go ahead, Garcia," JJ permitted.

"So your oracle of all knowledge just found something that connects all your victims," Garcia said proudly.

"That was fast," Reid commented.

"Oh Reid, why do you sound so surprised?" Garcia said laughing, "Any ways. Each of your victims grew up in a single parent household. They had lots of siblings. And your victims, they all knew each other. Well, they all crossed paths at least once," Garcia explained.

"Where, baby girl?" Derek asked.

"At the Kimball Jenkins Family Center in San Diego," Garcia said.

"What's that?" Reid asked.

"It's a family counseling center. So a family would go there, if for example, the bastard father just walked out on them and left the poor mother with a bunch of kids and a ton of financial problems," Garcia said angrily.

"Easy there, baby girl. Is that what happened to all our victims' families?" Derek asked.

"Yup, but it seems like all our victims were extreme over achievers," Garcia said.

"Makes sense. The kid wants to make like easier for their mom, cuz she's gotta take care of the kids by herself and work. The kid works extra hard in school to get scholarships, probably worked a part time job or two, and took care of the siblings," Hotch said.

"And the victims all had upper -middle class families now," JJ commented.

"They don't want to make their families suffer the way they did, so they work hard to be on top now," Emily said. This was the first time she had spoken up since we had gotten on the plane. She must have known that something was up. She was excellent profiler. It would be stupid to assume that she knew nothing.

"Since all the victims know each other, I think it's safe to assume that they probably know our unsubs, too," I said. The group nodded. We would be landing soon. We all took our seats and continued to review the case files silently.


	3. Chapter 3

**When the night falls on you**

**and you don't know what to do**

**let me come along**

**cuz even if you're wrong**

As we were getting off the plane, Emily's cell phone rang. JJ, Derek and Reid all exited the plane.

"I'll be there in a sec," Emily told Hotch as he exited.

"Okay," He replied. I stood in the plane and waited for her.

"Agent Prentiss," She answered her phone.

_"Hello Emily," The voice on the other end said. _Emily didn't reply. She recognized the voice.

_"This is Section Chief Strauss," The voice continued._

"What can I do for you, ma'am?" Emily asked politely, even though I knew inside she was ready to hang up.

_ "Do you remember our agreement from when you first joined the team?" Strauss asked._

"Ma'am, I thought that was over. After Milwaukee," Emily said slowly.

_"No. It wasn't over. I still expect you to update me on anything that you think I should know about Agent Hotchner. But now, I'd like you to widen this to everyone on the team. When this case is over ,I want to hear at least one thing about everyone on the team," Strauss explained._

"What about me, ma'am?" Emily asked.

_"I trust that you will follow protocol and act appropriately," Strauss said._

Emily growled, sighed and then put the smile back on her face, "Of course, ma'am."

_"Thank you Emily. I look forward to hearing from you," Strauss said and hung up._

"Bitch," Emily muttered after she had hung up.

"You okay?" I asked.

"Jesus!" Emily jumped.

"Sorry," I apologized.

"Oh, no..no… I'm sorry. I, uh, I didn't know you were in here," Emily explained calming down.

"You okay?" I asked.

"Yeah, yeah I"m fine," She lied.

"Emily," I said, "I know that's not true."

She sighed, "No. I'm fine."

"Strauss?" I asked.

"She's…she's been down my throat since I joined this team. She wants me to report at least one thing about everyone on this team, when we get back from the case," Emily said running her fingers through her hair. Strauss was using Emily, only to get rid of her later.

"And what are you gonna do about this?" I asked her. When I talked to her, I did my best to challenge her to rise about the situation.

"I'm _not_ going to sing in her ear. I'm going to tell her the good things. And there aren't bad things any way," Emily said.

"Okay," I said nodding, "I understand where you're coming from and how you're feeling. Trust me. She's putting a lot of pressure on all of us," I said. She sighed, "And if you need to talk some more, you know where I'll be," I said smiling.

She gave a small smile as well.

"Thank you," she said. Then she did something she never did to anyone. She gave me a hug. I hugged her too, patting her back.

"You never hug people," I said grinning.

"You've done a lot for me and you've taken care of me and I just want you to know I really appreciate it," Emily said.

"Anytime, kiddo," I said, "Now, c'mon, we need to go solve this case," I said kindly. She nodded and grabbed her bag and we left. Little did she know, that Strauss was plotting against her and against all of us, for her gain.


	4. Chapter 4

**I'll Stand by you**

**I'll stand by you**

**won't let nobody hurt you**

**i'll stand by you**

We walked into the police station, being led by JJ and Hotch.

"Agent Jareau," A man said, walking up to us, holding out his hand, "Detective John Walsh, we spoke on the phone," The man said. JJ shook his hand.

"This is our unit chief, SSA Hotchner," She said introducing Hotch, "And SSAs Rossi, Morgan, Prentiss and Dr. Reid," She said introducing the rest of the team.

"Thank you for coming on such short notice," The detective said.

"Of course," JJ said, "Do you have a place for our team to set up?"

"The conference room. Right through those doors," The detective said pointing, "All case files and evidence that we have are in there already."

"Thank you," Hotch said. JJ and Hotch led the team into the room. Det. Walsh followed.

"Reid, I want you to start on a geographical profile, Rossi and Prentiss, head to the first abduction site, Derek, Det. Walsh, and I will head to the dump site. JJ, I want you to set up a press conference with the local media for 1pm this afternoon," Hotch said.

"Will we be ready by then?" Derek asked.

"Yes," Hotch said firmly, "We'll meet back here in an hour." Everyone then went their separate ways to get the job done.

"A grocery store, on a Saturday morning," I said, reading from the file. We were inside the local grocery store.

"He must be stalking the victims. The abductions aren't random, they are all people from the counseling center, so it must be routine for Michelle Walker to go to the grocery store on Saturday morning," Emily said, "He might have waited for her here," Emily continued.

"There are a few cameras throughout the stores. If he did wait here for her, it might be on camera," I said. Emily pulled out her phone and dialed Hotch.

_"Hotchner,"_ he answered.

"Hotch, he might be stalking our vics, and there's a chance that if he was and he was waiting for them, he might be on one of the store cameras," Emily said.

_"Okay, talk to the manager, see if you can get the tapes. Send them to Garcia, and bring them back. When you get back you, Rossi and JJ can start looking through them as well," _Hotch said, and hung up.

We walked over to the customer service counter to see if we could speak with the manager.

"Arms folded…sign of remorse," Derek commented.

"But they're by a dumpster…" Det. Walsh said.

"That means he sees them as trash," Hotch explained.

"But after he feels bad?" Det. Walsh asked, starting to understand.

"Exactly," Hotch said nodding.

JJ walked into the room.

"How's it coming Reid?" She asked.

"Well…the abduction sites are all within 10 miles of the counseling center. They're also all within 10 miles of each other. All public shopping places: A grocery store, a Walmart, and a hardware store. There's a chance that he might work at one of these places, which is how he watches his victims," Reid explained.

"Or he stalks them," Emily said walking into the room, with me following.

"We got the tapes from the grocery store security camera. If he was waiting for Michelle Walker, our first victim, in the grocery store, he might on camera," I said.

We sat down around a laptop, and began watching the tapes. Emily's phone rang.

"Excuse me," She said quietly to the group, who acknowledged her leaving and went back to watching the tapes.

"Agent Prentiss," She answered as she stepped into the hall.

_"Emily. How is the case coming?" _The voice asked. Strauss. Emily rolled her eyes.

"Good, but I need to get back to work," Emily said slowly.

_"Of course. I understand. But first, do you have anything to report?" Strauss said._

"No. I don't," Emily said.

_"Emily. I'd like to hear about each member of your team," _Strauss said. Emily was silent.

_"How is Agent Rossi doing?" _

"Fine. We went to the abduction site together. He was very helpful."

_"Agent Reid?"_

"Fine. He worked out a geographical profile."

_"Agent Morgan?"_

"Fine. He and Agent Hotchner are at the dump site right now."

_"And how is Agent Hotchner?" _

"He is fine. Ma'am is this really necessary?"

_"Yes. How is Agent Jareau doing? I need a very detailed report on her to tell the State Department."_

"Ma'am? The State…department?"

_"Of course. Have they not told you about her transfer?" _

"No. They haven't. Ma'am I need to go. Goodbye," Emily said angrily and hung up. She stormed back into the room. Hotch and Morgan were back too.

"Emily, what's wrong?" I asked.

"JJ? Can I talk to you out in the hall…privately?" Emily asked.

"Ok…" JJ said quietly and they walked out.

"What the hell is going on?" Emily asked angrily.

"What? Who was that on the phone?" JJ asked.

"Strauss. A transfer? To the State Department?" Emily asked looking right into her eyes.

"Emily…I couldn't tell everyone," JJ explain sadly.

"I…can't deal with this! Strauss wants me to report something about everyone. She's trying to get rid of this team. I know it. And…and I know the truth. I know she's getting rid of me too," Emily said sadly.

"I'm…so sorry, Emily," JJ said taking Emily's hand. She squeezed it for a moment, and then led her back in side with the team.

"She knows…" JJ said to Hotch. I looked at her sadly.

"I need…I need to resign, Hotch," Emily said.

"What's going on?" Derek asked. He and Reid were the only ones out of the loop.

"Emily…give it one more day…stay on this case with us," Hotch begged.

"I can't, Hotch," Emily said shaking her head sadly.

"Take a break…think about it," Hotch said.

"Ok," Emily said and she walked away.

"Give her a couple minutes and go talk to her…" Hotch said to me, "I'll fill them in, and then we'll get back to the case," Hotch said. I slowly walked out the door and followed her. We had to get rid of Strauss, not Emily.


	5. Chapter 5

**so if your mad get mad**

**don't hold it all inside**

**c'mon and talk to me now**

"Hotch…JJ…you guys are serious? About this transfer? About Emily getting fired? This team doesn't work without them," Derek said to Hotch, pointing at JJ, and then out the door where Emily had left.

"Let Dave talk to Emily…but I do have an idea…" Hotch said.

"Yes?" Derek asked, waiting for more to the story.

"I think we should go back to Quantico. Strauss can't do as much damage when we're all there face to face," Hotch explained.

"Man, we can't just drop the case like that!" Derek exclaimed.

"I have backup on the way, right now," Hotch explained calmly.

"How did you-" He began.

"I had to lie to Strauss a bit, but I got Sam Cooper's team flying in now to cover," Hotch said.

"Lie?" Derek asked. Apparently that was all he had heard in the whole plan.

"Yeah…I told her our team wasn't adequate for this case…"Hotch said loudly, frustrated with Derek questioning his judgement at that point.

"You know that could just screw us?" Derek yelled. Suddenly this whole conversation had become between them. JJ and Reid were both silent. JJ pissed, Reid confused.

"Okay. Both of you. Shut up," JJ said firmly, standing up. Derek and Hotch were both taken aback.

"I can't stand this. We're leaving in an hour and a half. Got it? Anyone that's leaving better be on that flight by then or they're staying," JJ stated angrily.

"Jayje," Derek said softly.

"No. Stop talking to me. This was NOT suppose to get this far. This was suppose to be between me and Strauss and EMILY and Strauss, but for some god damn reason, Strauss thought it would be better to keep this whole thing a secret from her. So I get why she left. I get why she wants to resign. I want to resign before I have to be 'transferred'. I'd like to make that decision on my own, but obviously I can't!" JJ had exploded. She was angry, and sad, and confused, and frustrated, "But right now, there are people that NEED us to work. So until Sam Cooper's team gets here, I expect you all to work. I need a profile in thirty minutes for our press conference, and we are gonna look like complete asses if we don't have a profile ready," JJ yelled. She breathed out a sigh of relief.

"JJ," Hotch began sternly. JJ knew she had stepped out of bounds, ordering her superior and the other agents, but she had to do it. No one else would.

"Hotch I understand that that was not my place, but," JJ began. Hotch stopped her.

"No. I was just going to tell you, thank you. I agree with you. Let's get a profile out," Hotch said nodding. JJ ran her fingers through her hair and went to call me to explain the situation.

….…

"Hey," I said quietly, sitting down next to Emily, who I found sitting at a bar. There was a beer in front of her, but she hadn't touched it.

"Am I wrong to want to quit?" Emily asked me.

"Well…I know you…and I know you aren't a quitter," I began.

"Yeah, but-" I cut her off.

"But sometimes life is strange that way…" I said shrugging.

"Damn you and your fortune cookie ways," Emily muttered.

"Why? What's wrong with my fortune cookie ways?" I asked grinning.

"Your cookie is a little burnt…Everytime you give me these damn cryptic messages because you want me to rise above and figure this shit out myself…but sometimes I need the answer, Rossi!" She exclaimed.

"You want the answer?" I asked, "Really? Emily Prentiss, the most independent person I know, wants an answer?"

"Stop! So what! Maybe I do!" She shouted. Luckily, the bar she had chosen was loud, so it was not unusual for a breakout like this.

"Well fine then. Here's your answer. Go to Strauss. Make her _really_ mad. Go on and let her fire you. Okay? Because here's the truth: Strauss came to me. She came to me and told me that she was going to fire you. She just needed a good reason to do it. I told her splitting up this team was a bad idea. And you were an excellent agent, and there was no need to fire you. But she said that you two had some agreement? You quit before a case in Milwaukee," I explained. Emily's eye brows raised when I mentioned Milwaukee, "Oh yeah. I got to hear that whole story before breakfast. Strauss said that you didn't meet her end of the deal .Strauss said that she was trying to get you to rat out Hotch. Because Elle Greenaway may have shot a suspect in cold blood and then lied about it, because Jason Gideon went off his hinges, or because Spencer might have a serious drug problem and he didn't report ANY of it!" I was frustrated and was trying to get her to cave. It worked.

"Okay! Okay! OKay!" Emily shouted and then broke down. She sunk her head into her hands. No tears would fall, however.

"Okay WHAT?" I practically shouted.

"I know what to do! I don't need a damn answer from you! I need to do this with or without your help!" She exclaimed.

"What are you going to do?" I asked.

"I'm gonna deal with Strauss once and for all!" She exclaimed and stormed out of the bar. A small smile creeped across my face.

"That's my girl," I whispered and followed her out.


	6. Chapter 6

**a/n: thanks for all the support! hope you like this. ps i loooove reviews sooo you should review:) reviews for me are like fuel for a car, can't go without it. (hmmm strange analogy…did you enjoy that?) Also in this chappy I mention Strauss's secret that we know nothing about.. since we know nothing about it i'm gonna make up my own secret for her! boom boom boom! (like fireworks!) **

I walked back into the police station, following Emily. I was glad that I had got her energy up by getting her frustrated with me. I knew that was the best way to motivate her to get something done. She was _not_ a quitter. I walked in and saw Sam Cooper's team in the room. Hotch was there, but Reid, JJ and Derek had all gone.

"Dave, Emily," Hotch said motioning to me and Emily. We both walked over.

"We are all going back to Quantico to talk to Strauss, starting with you and JJ," Hotch said directing that at Emily.

"That's…good. And his team is taking over this case?" Emily asked.

"Yes," Hotch said. Emily was much calmer than before.

"Okay, well then let's head out," I said. Hotch walked out in front of us. We followed behind him. We arrived on the plane. JJ had left three seats open at the table, since Reid and Morgan already had seats on the couches, I knew she had saved them for us. I let Emily sit next to JJ and I sat next to Hotch.

"So I guess we need to talk?" I asked. JJ nodded.

"We all do," She said.

"Fair enough," I said shrugging.

"You want to start?" Hotch asked JJ.

"Okay. Well…I want you to be completely honest with us and explain what you and Strauss discussed," JJ said.

"When?" Hotch asked.

"About me," JJ said.

"Okay. Well Strauss thinks it'll look good for her if one of her agents gets a job at the Pentagon. They really want you to take that job and if she couldn't force you to take it, she'd lose her job," Hotch explained.

"What?" JJ asked confused.

"That's really it," Hotch said, "I tried to explain that we couldn't replace you. That we wouldn't replace you." JJ sat there quietly, shocked. We were all silent as we absorbed.

"Hotch…do you know what Strauss has been doing to me?" Emily asked.

"The same thing as before…she's been asking for dirt on us hasn't she?" He replied.

"Yeah…" Emily said, "She's called me twice…Were you two talking about me…?" Emily asked me softly.

"Yes…she wants to get rid of you," I said sadly.

"Why?" Emily asked, "I haven't broken protocol, I haven't done _anything_ wrong…have I?"

"I think I understand now," Hotch spoke up quietly.

"Hotch?" Emily asked.

"The other day…before my meeting about JJ, Strauss said she would be going away for a while. There's a good chance that she's sick, and that there is a chance that she could get better, but it's more likely that she won't," Hotch explained.

"So what does that have to do with me?" Emily asked.

"You're in line for her job…the board…they want you," Hotch explained.

"They…they do?" Emily asked surprised. This conversation had become between Emily and Hotch so JJ and I just sat and listened.

"Yes. I think Strauss was hoping to keep her position open in case she does get well…and if she has to take a leave of absence, you'll be taking her position, Emily, but if you're not here, Strauss's position would be left open," Hotch explained.

"Why wouldn't you be offered the spot?" Emily asked.

"I was. I declined. I like my role as the unit chief, nothing more," Hotch explained.

"We're here," JJ said. The plane had been landing while they had been talking; they didn't even notice.

"Here we go," I said. I patted Emily's shoulder as I walked by her with Hotch. Emily and JJ squeezed each others hands and walked together. Derek and Reid followed, giving each other the 'oh no' looks.

We all walked in together as a team.

"Go get Garcia. She needs to be here. She's part of this team, too," Hotch told Derek, and he immediately went to get her. The rest of us went into the conference room.

"Emily, JJ, you two go and get Strauss. I don't care about her excuses, she needs to be here now," Hotch commanded. He wasn't allowed to order his superior to come, but that didn't mean he wouldn't. Emily and JJ both walked to get Strauss.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

"Come in," Strauss called. Emily and JJ walked in.

"What can I do for you?" Strauss asked.

"You need to come with us to our conference room," Emily said.

"Excuse me?" Strauss asked.

"You need to explain to us and our team what is going on and why you are trying to split us up," Emily replied.

"I am very busy right now and-" Strauss began, but JJ cut her off.

"Ma'am. You can either come and explain to our whole team, or explain to us right now. But we are _not_ leaving until we get an explanation," JJ said angrily.

"Agent Jareau!" Strauss was shocked. Emily planted her feet firmly on the ground to prove she would not move. Strauss sighed, "Very well. Let's go," and she walked off, leaving the two agents to follow.

"Nice to see you Erin," I said smiling as Strauss walked in, followed by Emily and JJ. She glared at me, at which I chuckled.

"Now, what seems to be the problem?" Strauss asked. Emily looked at Hotch, who nodded.

"How about," She began, "How you're trying to fire me so I can't replace you when you go on your leave of absence?" Emily said angrily.

"Excuse me? How do you know about that?" Strauss replied. She was furious already.

"You're not denying it," Emily stated.

"How about how you're forcing me into a transfer because you'll look good if one of your agents gets a job at the pentagon?" JJ asked.

"And maybe then," Emily continued, "They won't replace you if it looks like you are doing a good job here."

"I…I…" Strauss stammered. We had caught her.

"Well?" Hotch asked. He had his normal serious face on, but I could see a smile behind his eyes. We were successful.

"This is…" Strauss began.

"Outrageous?" Derek asked, "I agree!"

"All…true," Strauss said, "But the paperwork you all interrupted me from, was for my resignation. Agent Prentiss, if you want, and if you fill out the paperwork, you can start your new post tomorrow. Agent Jareau, your transfer will be terminated at your word, and I'll be out of your hair after this," Strauss said sadly.

"Ma'am?" JJ asked softly.

"I'm dying. I have pancreatic cancer. I got the final call to day. They had me come down to the doctor. I have about six months to live," Strauss explained. That sent a shock wave through the room. She had been such a burden and problem in all of our lives, making us miserable, but this made us all take back any bad thoughts we had ever had about her.

"I'm…I"m so sorry, ma'am," JJ said, and then a chorus of sympathies and apologies came through the room.

"So if every one is all set, I need to go," Strauss said, and with that she turned and left. We were all silent, uncomfortable, and sad. Derek got up first. He looked at everyone in the room and left. Penelope followed suit, waving a goodbye and then walking out. Spencer followed them, as well.

"I suppose we are all set here," Hotch said seriously and quietly. He stood. "Hotch," Emily began.

"Yes?" He asked.

"I….never mind," She said shaking her head, "I guess I'll go get that paper work…" She said sadly. She didn't want the job. She didn't want to leave her team and she certainly didn't want to deal with all those politics. She hated politics, but after what everyone had been through today, she didn't want to make more problems. She would take the job. She would start tomorrow.

"And I'll terminate my transfer," JJ said. Hotch nodded.

"I'll see you tomorrow," He said to JJ and then he turned to Emily, "Good luck," He said shaking her hand. Just a hand shake. I'm sure she expected a hug.

"Thank you," She said nodding. Hotch left. Then it was me, JJ and Rossi.

"Yeah…good luck. May you make our lives easier," JJ joked. She hugged Emily.

"Thanks, Jayje, and uh..I'll do my best," Emily said giving a half hearted smile. JJ sensed something was wrong. She looked at me, giving me the 'fix this' look. I nodded, and she left. When she was gone I sat down.

"Sit," I told her. She did.

"You _hate _politics. Hotch and I know that. Why would you take this job?" I asked her.

"Who else is there? Hotch is our team leader, he couldn't leave. Who else would? And after all this crap, why make everything worse, when I can just end it?" Emily replied.

"This is your job we're talking about. What you're gonna have to deal with until retirement. And you want to be out in the field. I know you do," I told her.

"You're right, but-" She began, but I cut her off.

"There will be someone else to take this job, you know," I told her. She sighed.

"I hate politics," Emily muttered.

"Exactly," I said. She understood. I smiled.

"Okay. Fine. I don't want the job!" Emily said, "But…I have to tell Strauss this?" She asked.

"Yes. You do. But don't worry. Everything will be okay," I told her. Emily smiled and hugged me.

"Thank you. For everything," She said and then she went to Strauss's office to finish this finally.


	7. Chapter 7

**2 weeks later**

**I'll stand by you**

**I'll Stand by you**

**won't let no body hurt you**

**i'll stand by you!**

** "**Agent Prentiss?" A man asked. Emily smiled.

"Yes?" She asked.

"Hi, I'm Arthur Wallace. I'm your new section chief. Is you unit chief, uh, Agent Hotchner, I believe, is he around?" The man asked. Emily smiled.

"That's his office," Emily said pointing to Hotch's door.

"Thanks. Just wanted to introduce myself to him and uh your team?" Section Chief Wallace said. He was a handsome man in his 40s. Short blonde hair, with a striking resemblance to Neil Patrick Harris. Emily laughed to herself at this resemblance.

"We brief new cases at 10 o'clock in there," Emily pointed to the room.

"Thanks. NIce to meet you," He said.

"You too," Emily said and walked away. Everything was back to normal finally.

**A/n: Hope you enjoyed this story!Thanks for the reviews and support! My next character POV story will be in Spencer Reid's POV and it's a songfic. The song is Caught Up In You by 38 Special. Here is a summary: **

_Something is distracting Spencer Reid from his job. Could it be love? And when Spencer becomes awkward with words and can't find a way to confess his love, who will he turn to for help?_


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